Dominican pitchers making big strides in Nats organization

Bullpen depth is a commodity the Nationals want to shore up in 2017. The good news is that the organization is soon going to bear the fruit of its top talent from the Dominican Republic. The Nats also have some outstanding Dominican starting pitchers building from the lower levels on the farm.

Here is a list of some of the up-and-coming hurlers in the Nationals pipeline that could make a major step forward in 2017:

Baez went 9-7 with a 3.94 ERA in 27 starts for the Suns. He struck out 119 batters in 125 1/3 frames. Baez won his last three decisions, surrendering two earned runs or less in seven of his final 10 starts.

“Baez has an electric fastball with a quality slider,” Anderson said. “His fastball is big league level tool.”

Estevez has been highly touted with the Nats organization for a while now and this may be the season he moves up. After missing 2015 due to injury, Estevez spent 23 games and made 10 starts for Potomac last season. He pitched 59 innings and went 2-4.